The present application relates to toys. More particularly, the present invention relates to soft, stuffed toys having characteristic indicies for play while emitting desirable scenting of the air.
Stuffed, soft bodied animal and personage characters have long been a favorite toy for young children. Rarely are a group of young children seen, such as at airports, camps, and the like, where at least some of the children are carrying stuffed animals or characters. These play toys are readily huggable and have a comforting effect on the children. These toys typically are manufactured from fabric materials that is cut and attached together to define bodies with various appropriate appendages. The bodies are then filled with various stuffing materials, typically soft, but firm materials are used as well. The characters often are popularly known cartoon or other characters, as well as replicas of animals and the like.
These stuffed animal and personage characters are held, played with, and otherwise used in many different locations, but generally at the home of the owner of the toy. It is to be appreciated that these various environments have differing smells and odors. Often persons attempt to modify or control the odors, and there are a variety of devices directed to such. Further, it is believed that persons may be helped in attitude and comfort if the odors in their environment are pleasing and satisfactory rather than unpleasant or disturbing.
The scenting devices heretofore known have, while providing for the scenting of air typically in bathrooms or in heating and ventilation systems, have not been entirely successful in being incorporated with articles used by children to provide a favorable fragrance in their various environments.
Further, play articles often provide learning opportunities which extend from the particular toy to cross-related concepts. These cross-related concepts enhance the play and educational value of the toy. The enhancement occurs by the user of the toy conceptualizing from ideas and features of the toy to the cross-related concepts.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for improved soft stuffed toys for entertaining children while providing desirable scenting and enhancing cross-related conceptualizing. It to such that the present invention is directed.
The present invention meets the need in the art for an improved toy for entertaining children while providing desirable scenting with a stuffed, soft body scent-emitting character formed from a fabric material that defines an exterior form for a body of a character and a body cavity defined thereby filled with a stuffing material to provide volumetric definition of the character. A chamber within the body cavity receives scent-emittive materials and communicates a scent sensible exterior of the body cavity, the scent-emittive materials defining a scent indicia. The exterior surface includes a color indicia correlated with the scent indicia by including at least one visual characteristic indicative of the scent. A name indicia incorporates at least one symbol indicative of the scent indicia or the coloring indicia. The figurine, receiving the scent emittive material in the chamber, provides a soft toy having correlated scent, coloring, and name indicia.
In another aspect, the present invention provides a stuffed, soft body scent-emitting character, comprising a fabric material defining an exterior form for a body of a character and a body cavity defined thereby filled with a stuffing material to provide volumetric definition of the character. A chamber having a bottom and side wall extending in a first direction therefrom is received within the body cavity. The chamber receives scent-emittive materials and communicates a scent [sensible exterior of the body cavity, which defines a scent indicia. A cap defining a plurality of openings allows communicating air and is sized for removably engaging the chamber. The area of the openings in the plate is changable, for changing the volume of scented air communicated through the openings. A visual indicia attaches to the fabric material. The visual indicia is selected from a group consisting of a name indicia and a coloring indicia and correlates with the scent of the scent emittive material. The character, receiving the scent emittive material in the chamber, provides a soft toy that emits the scent correlated with the visual indicia.
Objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from reading the following detailed description of the invention and claims in view of the appended drawings.